Parmatma Prakash

Author(s): Yogindra Acharya
Publisher: Central Jaina Publishing House

Page 27

PARMATMA-PRÅKÁSH.
130 (practical worldly affairs) and Parmartha (religion or spirituality): While believing in this theory, it is impossible to carry on the worldly affairs as well as religious practices. Jainism is an un-Ekantic (many-sided or relational) system. According to Jainism the Swarupa (nature) of Vastu (Boing) is Samanya (general or universal) as well as Vishesha (particular or special). Sat (to be) which consists in Utpada (creation), Vyaya (destruction) and Dhrauvya (permanency) is the Lakshana (differentia) of Dravya (beingh So far as this universal nature, namely, Sat, is concerned, Dravya, or Being, is one, and monism holds good. But when its Vishesha (particular nature), namely, Jnana (knowledge or consciousness) comos in, Dravya at once becomes. two-Jiva and Ajiva-and dualism makes its appearance. Thus from the Samanya Apeksha (the universal point of view) there is of course one existence, but from the Vishesha Apeksha (particular point of view) it is more than one. Thus Adwait and Dwait, when believed in an absolute and onesided manner are untenable; but they can, with the help of an un-Aikantic (relational or many-sided system), both be reconciled and are true from their respective points of view. Both the one and many are existing the one existing in the many and the many in one To hold that the one is existing apart from, and outside of the many, or that the one alone exists and the many are its false appearances and merely nonentities, is to depart from the truth.
Hence, the Acharya in this Sloka, in order to guard against the extreme and absolute monism of Advaita, advises his disciples not to confound the Jiva and Ajiva with each other. The real ignorance which causes the bondage of Karmas of the Samsári Jiva (em bodied soul) is that he does not understand the real nature of Jiva and Ajiva, i.e., of soul and matter. This Samsári Jiva (embodied soul) seeks his happiness in matter, feels attraction and repulsion towards worldly objects-identifies his soul with his body and forgets its own Svábhava (nature), which is Omniscience. When the Samsari Jiva begins to understand his own nature and the nature of matter, when he sees that attraction and repulsion are the attributes of matter, while his own attribute is Jnana (knowledge), and when he realizes that he is self-conscious (Atman) and that his body and other surrounding objects in whieh he seeks happiness are devoid of intelligence, then he ceases to identify himself with matter and believes himself as existing in the self. This kind of belief called the Bamyat Darshana in the Scriptures is the true path of Salvation, and is the kind of Advaita recommended therein. It does not mean that there is only one Soul in the whole Universe, but that each soul is a non-dual, hence simple and incorruptible substance sn bsistence, or entity, in itself, and is its own God. This is the feature of distinction between Jainism and the school of Hindu philosophy known as Advaitism of Shankara Misra..
Jainism also differs from those who set up a separate kind of God and describe him as an anique being. This is untenable on the ground that our concept of God cannot but be that of & Perfeet Soul, both being pure spirit or consciousness in essence. The substance or substratum of existence being the same in both cases, it is inconceivable that there should be any difference between God and soul in any eggential respect. Hence, the difference between God and man lies only in respect of the manifestation of the natural attributes of the soul.substance. It follows from this that when a soul purifies itself sufficiently to manifest its divine attributes, it